Cancer is recognized as a type of disease that affects many biochemical, electrical, and mechanical functions of a cell. Cytoskeletal alterations, damping of electrodynamic microtubule oscillations, diminution of dielectric properties of the membrane, and disruption in the ion channel activity are some of the considerable mechanical and electrical alterations in cells during cancerous transformation.
Highly accurate methods for monitoring such alterations in single cells, such as electrical, mechanical, and electro-optical monitoring of single cells may detect cancerous transformation in its early stages. In case of electrical recording, high spatial resolution contacts between electrical probes and single cells and also non-invasive recording are critical for both fundamental biophysical studies and disease monitoring; particularly for bioelectrical signals, which are weaker than action potentials.
Nanoscale electrical probes (e.g., conductive silicon nanowires and silicon nanotubes (SiNT)) have opened new fields of investigation, leading to the emergence of possible future applications in cell bioelectrical and electrophysiological studies. Recently, the nanostructured probe-based electrical recording methods have been applied solely for action potential measurements outside the cell of some special types of electrically active cells with sharp responses, such as neurons and cardiomyocytes.
Therefore, there is a need for a label-free cancer diagnosis or cancer progression detection method with single-cell resolution using non-invasive devices or instruments capable of measuring intracellular bioelectrical responses, even minor electrical variations for a wide range of cell types.